Justice J M Malik and his Laudable Judgement on Doctor’s Skill

In a landmark judgement, one that has given hope to many doctors Justice J M Malik has noted that “…It is known that no doctor will assure full recovery or give guarantee that result of surgery would be 100% cure.” This means that the doctor cannot be held responsible for neglect just because the patient did not get the desired results after treatment. However, doctors should treat the patients to the best of their ability.

The case

Justice Malik was presiding over an appeal in the case of Rajesh Taneja vs Kaiser Hospital & 3 Ors. 17 May 2016 at NCDR. The complainant, Rajesh Taneja, a known case of Ankylosing Spondylitis, had undergone Total Hip Replacement (THR) of the right side at Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education & Research (in short, PGIMER, Chandigarh) in 1992. Again, left side THR was performed in 1996. Thereafter, he suffered pain in the right hip and difficulty in walking, therefore, he consulted Dr. O. N. Nagi, Head of Orthopaedics Department at PGI. He recommended for replacement of acetabular cups on 26-08-2002, but due to non-availability of early date at PGI, the complainant consulted Dr. M.S. Gupta (OP3). The surgery was performed on 04-01-2003. …

We are a healthcare media company specializing in Business Information for Healthcare Professionals. We bring our exceptional cross-industry knowledge to the business community through a combination of print & digital media and live summits, providing organizations with cutting-edge insights to drive growth in the constantly changing business environment.